This invention relates to electrical connections and methods of attaching an electric conductor to an electrically conductive terminal.
Electric motors and other electromagnetic devices typically have direct connect terminals in which the terminal is secured to an electric conductor for a magnet. To attach the conductor to the terminal, some of the conductors cladding must first be trimmed to expose an end portion of the conductor's wire. The exposed end of the wire is then inserted into the terminal. The terminal is then crimped in two locations. One of the crimps secures the exposed end of the wire to the terminal so that the wire is electrically coupled to the terminal. The other crimp secures the conductors cladding to the terminal.
The conductor is generally required to be a precise length. Often, too much of the cladding is trimmed during the attaching process. If too much cladding is trimmed, then the cladding is not sufficiently long to reach the terminal. In some cases the cladding can be pulled out a sufficient length from the stator slot to enable the cladding to reach the terminal. In other cases, adjustment of the cladding cannot be accomplished at all.
Because of the difficulties caused by too much of the cladding being trimmed, the prior art has focused on prevention. Presently, the trimming operation is performed via a hand-held device which singes or melts the cladding a fixed distance from the end of the wire. Removing a fixed length of the cladding prevents a situation in which too much of the cladding is trimmed. However, hand-held devices having two-edge singe blades are generally awkward to use and must be rotated 360 degrees around the conductor to produce complete separation. Melting of the cladding sometimes produces an uneven cut, making it difficult to locate and to securely crimp the cladding into the insulation crimp of the terminal. The melting process also produces noxious gasses that require ventilation.